President West Coast 2022 Welcome Letter

We are so excited to welcome you to our 10th Annual Diversity Alliance for Science West Coast Conference!

This year is most exciting for DA4S, because it marks our organizations’ 15th anniversary and our 10th year hosting our West Coast event.

It was 15 years ago that DA4S came to be, as a result of a conversation between two visionaries – Jackie La Joie and Leah Brown – who created an environment for making connections between corporate buyers and suppliers in the life sciences  – and 15 years later DA4S has grown to be the nation’s premier organization in the life sciences.

Our theme this year is the “Power of Us” – and rightly so – we, as an organization have seen that through the power of us – by working together to grow and develop this organization and making connections with each other – our respective communities have grown and thrived.

Over the past 15 years – DA4S has held steadfast to its roots – of being the connection point for the life sciences community and paving the way to networking opportunities and committing to the growth and development of diverse suppliers all while continuing to enhance member benefits and conference experiences.  This shows in our programing and how it has evolved over the years to address our commitment and socio-economic challenges.  Over the years we have enhanced our mentoring program,  membership lounge, and educational webinars, and  have launched new programs, such as the Merck/Drexel Leadership Program, the Elevate Black Program, and the Geo Cluster Conference.

Through the years – we have learned that the Power of Us is strong and the many success stories resulting are endless. 

Our community remains strong , and as we face the future, we will continue to use the Power of Us – and remain engaged and committed to foster a collaborative environment to identify innovative solutions for complex challenges through our connections and partnerships.  As we gather in California, we encourage you to make those connections and embrace the community by also being part of DA4S as a committee member or board member to help shape our future growth and success.

We are so excited to get back together on the West Coast!  We have another outstanding conference for you developed by our Board of Directors, Executive Director and Committees and hope that this conference will help you to make the connections, nurture existing ones, and that you learn something new along the way!

Here’s to the Power of US!